Both play a role. Saying it has nothing to do with parenting is absolutely untrue. You can see the clear difference in children with parents who raised them correctly versus those who didn't before the child is assimilated into society.
You are going to tell me a kid that has a 4.0+ GPA, got accepted into every ivy league school and a kid who flunked out of school have nothing to do with parenting? There are children out there who started businesses at the age of 12 that's making hundreds of thousands of dollars. Why? Because their parents noticed their gifts and nurtured them. Whereas a kid with a gift could have parents that just want him to go to school and that's it. The kid ends up doing something they hate and/or are not passionate about.
And to say America has no culture is ridiculous. It definitely does.
It's the job of the parents to teach their children to not be consumed by society and follow what society does or tells you to do. If that were the case we'd all be mindless drones who all thought, think, eat, drink, etc the same.
